Cover image courtesy of Oaklands Stud

Timing can be so important when it comes to taking stallion nominations, and with 10 stakes winners globally since the start of 2021, Power has gained significant momentum ahead of his fourth season at Oaklands Stud, since moving across from New Zealand, where he stood at Cambridge Stud.

Momentum is flowing too for Oaklands Stud addition, Exosphere, who got his first European stakes winner when Ocean (Fr) claimed the G3 Prix de Ris-Oranges at the same Deauville meeting.

Oaklands Stud Principal Neville Stewart was understandably pleased by the news from Europe as the family prepares to offer three stallions in 2021, with the Group 1-winning son of Fastnet Rock, Prince Fawaz, also joining the fold.

"In my lifetime of breeding, and I've got a pretty good memory, I don’t think any other commercial stud in Queensland would have ever had a result like that where two of their standing stallions would have got a double at Deauville in a Group 1 and Group 3," Stewart told TDN AusNZ.

Power's success through the Ken Condon-trained Laws Of Indices comes only a couple of months after the Noel Moodie-prepared Helvic Dream (Ire) delivered him his first Group 1 winner in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at The Curragh.

They are two of the 11 stakes winners the son of Oasis Dream (GB) has produced from his time at Coolmore Stud in Ireland.

He has also produced 10 stakes winners from his crops conceived at his previous base at Cambridge Stud, including the Group 2-winning pair Gift Of Power (NZ) and Mighty Giant (NZ). Mighty Giant's victory in the G2 Chairman's Trophy at Sha Tin in April for trainer Ricky Yiu was also significant in adding to the international appeal and commercial success of the stallion.

"Because Magic Millions and Inglis sell on an international basis, in terms of their clients, I think the answer to that is definitely yes," Stewart replied when asked whether those strong overseas results had resonance with Australian buyers.

"There is a lot more international money about. You look at Power, he is a leading sire of winners in Hong Kong and a lot of the money that is coming into the pool for the sale receipts at both Magic Millions and Inglis is from international buyers. If you have good international results, that should turn itself into sales average increases."

International demand in the sales ring

Power's first crop bred from the Stewarts' property went through the Australian yearling sales ring this year, and averaged a quite respectable $31,781, with Oaklands Stud selling the majority.

"I'm not a greedy person and I don’t put big reserves on my yearlings. I'd be one of the few studs in Queensland that has a 100 per cent clearance rate and I've had that 100 per cent rate for many, many years," Stewart said.

"I take them to the sales to sell, and the best way to value the animal is to take them to the marketplace in terms of an auction.

"Quite a few of them were bought by Hong Kong buyers and that will continue his legacy in Hong Kong, which is very important to get that international connection. We are quite excited to see our babies coming off Oaklands and going to Hong Kong. We had one go to Macau as well, which is a good indicator that they are watching."

What is also pleasing for Stewart is the fact that Power's two Group 1 winners in Europe are out of Danehill (USA)-line mares, with Laws Of Indices out of an Irish-bred daughter of Darley Champion Exceed And Excel.

"He's got the pedigree that nicks with that blood and one of his other strong nicks is with Zabeel and Keeper from his time at Cambridge. He's a good stallion and is good to us here. When you get these foals by him, they are such handsome, good-looking individuals, you walk away happy," he said.

As well as that international success, Power is also having his best season in terms of race results in New Zealand, where he has had 35 winners, including five at stakes level, to be 14th overall on the New Zealand Sires' Table. From a limited number of Australian runners in 2020/21, he has had 10 winners, including the John Sargent-trained Elizabeel, who was placed in a G1 Surround S.

Managing the book

Power stands his fourth season at Oaklands Stud at $13,200 (inc GST), having risen in popularity every season he has served in Queensland from a book of 79 mares the first year, to 93 in the second year and then 100 last year.

"We won't be covering any more than that. I said to (sons) Hamish and Alistair, that supply and demand works that way. We won't open him up to 170-180, because when you get to the sales ring, you can cop a hiding, because of the law of averages," Stewart said.

The Stewarts will also be expecting interest to strengthen in Exosphere after Ocean, who was bred from his one season shuttling to Haras Du Logis, was an easy winner in the G3 Prix de Ris-Oranges over six furlongs.

That is Exosphere's first European stakes winner and his third overall.

"We are very excited about him. That was a really big win. I watched it, and he was something like $20 a win and he ran away from them, which is a big deal in a Group 3 race in France," he said.

The Group 1-winning son of Lonhro will stand his first season in Queensland at $4950 (inc GST).

"People have been very responsive to the service fee. Alistair set the service fee and not me, I wanted to stand him for a bit more, but he said, 'Dad, let's just stand him at $4500 plus GST and stick to it'.

"He's the new face of Oaklands now, and he was right in what he did. Exosphere is very good value and I’ll stick my chin out and say that in my opinion, he is the best-value young stallion in Queensland. I think Power, by a country mile, is the best-value proven sire."

Expectations are also high for Prince Fawaz, who was announced late in June and has already gained strong traction.

"He's ready to go and he's already up to 48 confirmed bookings. We only launched him late, but the owners in him are very excited about supporting him," Stewart said.

"The Kelly family own a large percentage of the horse and their mares have been arriving on a daily basis. The other group of people in the horse are supporting him as well. They are buying mares to support him.

"We won't be overdoing it with him. We want to keep him to that level of 100, as you don’t want to flood the marketplace."

Prince Fawaz will stand at $11,000 (inc GST).

Cover image courtesy of Bronwen Healy

Denise Martin enjoyed a successful career in the hospitality industry before she combined her years of international and domestic business experience with a passion for racing to establish Star Thoroughbreds.

The Sydney-based Martin’s Star Thoroughbreds has celebrated multiple successes at the highest level with its racing colours of purple with white stars and white cap a familiar winning sight across the tracks of Australia for nearly three decades.

She has been the recipient of sage advice from legends of the turf over the years with a trio of trainers in the late Tommy Smith and his daughter Gai Waterhouse and Chris Waller among her mentors.

But her first major influence was her late father Geoffrey Bernard (Paddy) Martin, who during her Tasmanian upbringing provided the spark that would evolve into a passion for thoroughbreds.

“My dad, TJ and Gai and Chris have been my main mentors. My dad in all walks of life and the other three in business and life as well, they have been key supporters of mine,” Martin said.

“I was born in Tasmania and my dad, who I would include as my primary mentor, was my great hero. He was an icon in Tasmanian sport and in the Hall of Fame and an extremely successful sportsman and businessman.

“He had a very high profile in Tasmanian life and sadly passed away in June last year, but had an extremely full and wonderful life.

“When Dad finished competing at a high level in Australian Rules and cricket he became an agent for brands that we didn’t really know back then – Nike, Adidas and Reebok.

“He was very well-acquainted with the sporting icons of the time in this country, and to an extent overseas, who were associated with those brands.”

During her formative years, Martin was regularly exposed to the thoroughbred industry.

“My grandfather raced horses in a small way in Tasmania and Dad followed racing as a young man. He was very well known to a number of major trainers and racing people in Victoria,” she said.

“As a child, there were racing stations that would broadcast the equivalent of Sky Racing. The radio on a Saturday morning would always have the racing on, so it was something I naturally leaned toward.

“Dad raced horses successfully and I always loved watching racing.”

Overseas experience

On an early working holiday in England, Martin continued her love affair with racing.

“One of the first things I did was to go to one of the feature jumps meetings and I saw Crisp race. It was the most emotional race I think I have ever witnessed. To watch Crisp lead almost the entire way was amazing,” she said.

The Australian-bred Crisp (Rose Argent {GB}) shouldered a massive 72kg in the Grand National Steeplechase at Aintree and was out in front by 30l at one stage, before he was collared close to home by Red Rum (Ire) (Quorum {GB}), who was to win the race twice more.

“Through an associate I became involved in the hotel business. It was never intended it would be a major career. I worked in London at a number of major hotels and in South Africa,” Martin said.

“My career in hotel management was something that almost happened accidentally. It wasn’t my original plan, but I had a wonderful life working for major hotels internationally and in Australia.

“It was remarkable to meet the people that I did – heads of state, entertainers and musicians.”

A Star is born

Armed with an array of business skills, Martin was determined to go out on her own and, calling on her love of racing, the Star Thoroughbreds syndication business was born in 1993.

“I decided to establish my own business over 25 years ago and when I was asked why, it was a strange response at the time. I said to people that I wanted to see if I could operate a successful business and all these years later, hopefully I have,” she said.

Among the many celebrities Martin crossed paths with during her career in hospitality was Gai Waterhouse, who was to become an integral part of Star Thoroughbreds.

“I had known Gai casually through my hotel life in Sydney. I didn’t know her well then and at the time I was looking to establish my business, Gai had secured her licence and Te Akau Nick had won the G1 Metropolitan,” she said.

“I remember at the time it was one of the most wonderful things I had seen in racing, that she had fought to get her licence and trained a Group 1 winner.

“I thought it was fantastic and I asked Gai and Rob to come to the hotel I was at in Melbourne at the time and then I surfaced with my plan to establish Star and they were extremely supportive.”

Waterhouse then worked alongside her father Tommy in Sydney and subsequently took over the operation.

“I was fortunate enough to have my business with Tulloch Lodge and TJ Smith was an extraordinary mentor,” Martin said.

“He had a very simple, but practical philosophy for success. He was obviously a legendary racehorse trainer and was in the twilight of his career.

“I remember on day one or two of operating a syndication business I asked him what the key elements I should ask of someone who was inquiring about buying a share in a horse.

“He replied: ‘You only need to ask two things, do you have the dollars and what does your wife say'. These days, you have to say what does your wife or husband say because women buy shares, but in TJ’s day I guess it was mainly males.

“TJ was someone who I got great advice from and his thoughts about yearling selection and racing overall was hugely valuable.

“He always insisted at the sales that we looked at the horses on type and I remember he said to me, it’s the animal doing the running and not the page.

“That has always stuck in my mind and I also worked for many years with Gai and her extraordinary success and optimism is legendary.”

Positive influence

Martin said Waterhouse’s positive outlook was fundamental to their extraordinary success.

“She is the best example of believing that a glass is half full and a genuine belief that anything is possible. Star and Gai formed a great association and she made sure that I believed in myself and to take Star to the top of the syndication business, she was another great mentor.”

A highlight of Martin’s association with Waterhouse was Sebring, who was purchased at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale for $130,000.

“Sebring won the G1 Golden Slipper S. and became a hugely successful stallion, they were extraordinary highlights. He was tremendous and to have bought him was remarkable,” Martin said.

Sebring passed away in early 2019 at Widden Stud after suffering a heart attack, but his influence is still of major significance. This season, he has sired 141 winners, a tally only surpassed by I Am Invincible, Written Tycoon and Snitzel.

Martin subsequently formed a partnership with Chris Waller and they continue to enjoy outstanding success.

“It’s almost eight years with Chris now and it’s been remarkable. He has become a world-class trainer of course and breaks records year after year,” Martin said.

“It was a great eye-opener for me to have Star with his stable at the time Chris trained Winx. He has a tremendous capacity to remain calm under extraordinary pressure, he is simply amazing.

“His commitment to his business is outstanding and he is so insightful. I can recall well when Invincibella was a rising 6-year-old and I asked him if she should be sold as a broodmare.

“He simply said to me 'no, not yet' and the following year she won the $1 million Magic Millions race for fillies and mares for a second time, won the G2 Dane Ripper for a second time and then the G1 Tatt’s Tiara and over $3 million.

“Chris has taught me many things and I believe mentors are with you throughout your life. His advice has been wonderful and he shows real patience is a key in racing these horses until they are much older.

“Invincibella won her third Magic Millions as a 7-year-old and then she was sold and is in foal to Justify. I’ve been very lucky in my personal and business life to have people that have been there with me and for me, and if you have those people I think you are very fortunate.

“When Invincibella won her Group 1 and three $1-million races on Magic Millions Day and became I Am Invincible’s greatest stakes earner were proud moments.

“I had 20 years with Gai and now eight with Chris and both are fantastic people who I admire so much.”

Martin has also enjoyed numerous Group 1 victories with the likes of Theseo (Danewin), Driefontein (Fastnet Rock), Foxplay (Foxwedge), D’Argento and Danglissa (Danzero) and knows any successes warrant hearty celebrations.

“There are highs and lows in racing all the time. The key is to always enjoy the highs as much as you can because it’s a hard business,” she said.

“We have been very fortunate to still have had people with us as owners from the outset and they have become great friends and supporters. In their own way, they are mentors as well.”

And coming full circle, her father Paddy’s early words of advice and life lessons learned from him have been integral to Martin’s success, both in the hotel business and through her ongoing Star Thoroughbreds journey, as well as wider family members.

“When I established Star, I didn’t know if the business would be successful, but I knew I would work as hard as I could to make it a high-quality company. It was a remarkable new challenge and I always had the support of my family,” she said.

“Dad was a kind and thoughtful person and respectful. He taught us that commitment to a task was key to success and if you had a vision and you worked hard to achieve it, you would most likely succeed.

“He taught me that respect and kindness to others wasn’t just a key ingredient to success, but also key to a happy and fulfilling life.”

Cover image courtesy of the JRHA

Slipper winner's quality reigns again

The She Will Reign colt by Heart's Cry was offered by his breeders at Northern Farm, who purchased the mare privately off the track from the syndicate of owners, headed by Darby Racing, in 2019.

The half-sister to the Group 2 winner and Kingstar Farm stallion Time To Reign, also won the G1 Moir S. as well as a G2 Silver Slipper S. in a 12-start career for trainer Gary Portelli that saw her win six races in all and earn over $3.2 million.

Danox Co Ltd, who race the 'Danon' horses and are backed by software executive Masahiro Noda, were the successful bidders on Monday, going to one of the Top 10 prices of the opening day for She Will Reign's yearling colt.

It was also the equal top-priced yearling on the day by Heart's Cry, the sire of a host of Japanese stars, including G1 Cox Plate winner and Japanese Horse of the Year, Lys Gracieux (Jpn). Heart's Cry was recently pensioned from duty at Shadai Stallion Station.

It's the second massive result for the progeny of a former Australian Group 1 winner at the JRHA Sale in three years, after Yankee Rose's (All American) filly by Deep Impact sold for ¥210 million, the equivalent of AU$2.55 million, in 2019.

Both mares raced in Darby Racing's ownership colours in Australia, and Scott Darby said it was another indication of the value of Australian bloodlines in the international market.

"It’s an amazing result and gee they sell well over there. Yankee Rose's first foal went for close to $3 million, so they certainly sell for big money," Darby told TDN AusNZ.

"What it highlighted to me, seeing Yankee Rose's progeny go through and now She Will Reign's, they might be spending big money buying our very best racetrack mares but you can see why. They put them to their good stallions and they make huge money on them."

Darby watched the colt be sold through the ring through an online stream and did notice a few similarities to his dam, who he picked out for $20,000 at the 2017 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale.

"It was a good result I watched him go through the ring and he somewhat resembled She Will Reign in looks, colour and type. It’s a good result for the breeder," he said.

"You'd be hard pressed trying to get that sort of money here in Australia. You’d have to have a lot of things go right and have the right stallion to even hit the million-dollar mark."

Another Rose set to bloom?

Yankee Rose, also a dual Group 1 winner, was an even cheaper buy, costing just $10,000 through the 2015 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale and going on to win over $2 million on the track. Her colt by Lord Kanaloa (Jpn) is catalogued to sell as Hip 398, in Tuesday's foal section.

Following the breeding careers of his two star mares in Japan has not been easy for Darby, but he is pleased to see their progeny so well received by the market.

"They were such cheap buys here as yearlings and then were able to well and truly surpass what we paid for them, but to see them go to another level and become international, who would have thought?" he said.

Yankee Rose's Deep Impact filly is named Romneya (Jpn) and is yet to race, while she also has a Duramente (Jpn) yearling filly.

She Will Reign, meanwhile, foaled a filly by young stallion Satono Diamond (Jpn) in January.

Progeny of Aussie mares in demand

The colt wasn't the only progeny of a Group 1-winning Australian mare to go through the ring, with a Heart's Cry colt out of G1 Robert Sangster S. winner Driefontein (Fastnet Rock), selling by Shadai Farm to Shinobu Nakanishi for ¥58 million (AU$704,546).

A yearling colt by Satono Diamond out of G1 VRC Oaks winner Set Square (Reset), was offered by Northern Farm and was also snapped up by Danox Co Ltd for ¥38 million (AU$461,599).

Hip 193, a colt by Just A Way (Jpn) out of G1 Australian Oaks winner Absolutely (Redoute's Choice), was purchased by Hayashi Fumihiko for ¥33 million (AU$401.157) from the draft of Northern Farm.

The top hips early in the day were colts by the late Deep Impact (Hip 1) and Lord Kanaloa (Hip 100), both who sold for ¥300 million (AU$3.64 million).

The Deep Impact colt, who was out of Grade 2 winner Go Maggie Go (USA) (Ghostzapper {USA}), was sold to Hasegawa Yuji, while the Lord Kanaloa colt, out of G1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mares' Sprint victress Finest City (USA) (City Zip {USA}), was bought by Fujita Susumu. Both were consigned by Northern Farm.

The lone colt by Coolmore's Justify (USA), Hip 113, who is out of G1 First Lady S. winner Zipessa (USA) (City Zip {USA}), sold for ¥200 million (AU$2.43 million) to Kaneko Mokoto Holdings from the draft of Shadai Farm.

A colt by Coolmore Australia's new addition in 2021, Wootton Bassett (GB), Hip 57, was purchased by Osamu Hiratu for ¥52 million (AU$631,662), while another Coolmore shuttler, Saxon Warrior (Jpn) had several hips sell including Hip 131, who went for ¥190 million (AU$2.31 million) to Kondo Junko.

Maurice (Jpn), who returns to Arrowfield Stud this year, also had a host of yearlings sell, including Hip 2, a colt from Northern Farm's consignment, sell for ¥92 million (AU$1.12 million), while his former Arrowfield barnmates Mikki Isle (Jpn) and Real Steel (Jpn) had yearlings sell up to ¥50 million (AU$607,300) and ¥37 million (AU$449,450) respectively.

Satono Aladdin (Jpn), who has shuttled to Rich Hill Stud for the past two seasons, had some strong results, including the ¥115 million (AU$1.4 million) paid for Hip 82, a colt offered by Northern Farm and purchased by Haramura Masatoshi.